Chapter 17
Longbourn
Dear Georgiana,
I fear this letter finds me in such a tizzy that I likely will not make much sense.
But pardon me, I worry that I am alarming you.
I assure you that I am healthy and well.
Our trip from Derby to Longbourn was a comfortable one, and it was good to be home and to spend time with my parents and sisters.
Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner stayed but two days and then returned to London. That very same evening, we had a visitor named Mr. Amos Stirling, and I was abruptly informed by my father and mother that I am to marry the man.
Oh dear, I daresay I am sufficiently distressed that the letter will need copying.
I have never met Mr. Stirling before, and he is five and forty years old if he is a day.
He is a stranger to these parts, and the reason my father wishes me to marry him is that Mr. Stirling holds twelve thousand pounds of my father’s debts, and if my father refuses our marriage, Mr. Stirling will have my father cast into Marshalsea!
Oh friend, I had no idea that this debt was hanging over our heads! It is from my father’s late brother, who died some years ago. My father took a loan to pay off his debt, and he never bothered to pay much more than the interest. It is so…
It is not your problem, dear friend. Indeed, I ought not to be writing this to you, but I did think I should explain that I will soon be married and may not be able to write as often.
God bless you, dear friend.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Bennet
P.S. I forgot to mention my ankle and face. Thankfully, both are nearly healed.
***
2nd July, 1811
Dear Miss Bennet,
Will you marry me?
I cannot bear the thought of you being forced into a marriage to a man who is old enough to be your father.
I admire you very much; in truth, I am more than half in love with you already.
You are an incredible woman who is brave and intelligent and sensible.
You saved my sister from a fate worse than death, but more than that, you have captured my imagination like no woman has ever done.
If you are willing, let me know, and I will come immediately to arrange for the wedding. It is permissible for a woman to break off an engagement, after all, and while I do not care to boast, I am very eligible.
Please send your response as soon as possible.
Obviously, I am enclosing this in a letter from my sister so that there is no appearance of impropriety.
With admiration and love,
Fitzwilliam Darcy
P.S. I am confused as to why Mr. Stirling chose you!
I do not know the man personally, but I have heard of him; he does not have a good or godly reputation!
I am aware you have four other sisters. Having never met you, surely he does not realize how magnificent you are.
But this was obviously planned before you even arrived home, before the man laid eyes on you.
I am distressed and angry and bewildered.
***
6th July 1811
Dear Mr. Darcy,
I would joyfully marry you, as I also admire you greatly, and respect you, and yes, love you.
Moreover, you are very easy on the eyes.
But I fear I cannot. Even if you were willing to pay off the debt, Mr. Stirling and my father have signed papers that if I break the engagement, a full six hundred pounds of Longbourn’s income will go to Stirling every single year until my father dies.
The income of the estate is two thousand pounds a year, so obviously that is a substantial portion.
I simply cannot do that to my family, and I could never ask you to pay such a sum every year because of my father’s stupidity.
As to why I was chosen, I have no idea! My older sister, Jane, is far more beautiful than I am. She is, indeed, the most beautiful lady I have ever beheld. Furthermore, as you said, Mr. Stirling never even met me before demanding my hand.
If someone must be married unwillingly, it had better be me than my sisters. I have a cheerful disposition, and by the grace of God, will be able to manage reasonably well.
Thank you for your kindness in offering for my hand, Mr. Darcy. I wish that we could … but enough of that; I do not want to cry again. I am resigned to my fate, and I will face it with courage.
Gratefully,
Elizabeth Bennet
***
Pemberley
10th July 1811
Dear Miss Bennet,
I beg you to delay the wedding at least a month so that I can try to find a solution to this problem.
There must be some reason that this man has chosen you.
If necessary, I would pay six hundred pounds a year, or even six thousand, but there is likely some other way of ending the engagement.
I am making inquiries. Please trust me when I say I will do everything in my power to make it possible for us to marry. Pray do not lose hope.
Is there any estate nearby which I would be able to lease so that I can be near you?
With affection,
Fitzwilliam Darcy
***
Longbourn
14th July 1811
Dear Mr. Darcy,
Or perhaps Fitzwilliam?
My mother wishes to have a grand breakfast after the wedding, and she also wants to take time for me to purchase wedding clothes, so I can definitely delay the wedding for a month.
Mr. Stirling is not even in the area right now.
He has business in London and will not return until a week before the wedding, which is tentatively arranged for late August.
There is an estate nearby called Netherfield Hall, which is twice the size of Longbourn and has been standing empty for several years.
With gratitude,
Elizabeth Bennet
***
28th July 1811
Dear Elizabeth,
I am in London now with Georgiana. I was intending to lease Netherfield Hall, but then I remembered my friend, Charles Bingley, has been wishful of leasing an estate for a considerable while.
He is one of my closest friends, and his fortune is from trade.
His parents’ greatest desire was that the Bingleys would become members of the landed gentry, and Bingley has been speaking to me for some time about his desire to find a manor to lease.
Netherfield is actually perfect for him. He toured it yesterday and is extremely pleased. He will move in next week with his sisters and brother-in-law, and I will be his guest!
I have also learned more about Mr. Amos Stirling.
I still am not certain why he wants to marry you, but I am confident it has something to do with a family issue.
He is a great nephew to old Lady Stromberg, who is incredibly rich, along with being strait-laced.
The man does not have a particularly good reputation with women, and if we were not to be married, I would find myself strongly desirous of punching him in the nose.
Do you trust me? If you do, I will arrange to compromise you in front of Mr. Stirling, whereupon he is certain to end the engagement.
His aunt, Lady Stromberg, bullies her relations mercilessly and would never permit any of her male descendants to wed a woman whose reputation is even slightly besmirched.
I will also pay off your father’s debt, and I beg you not to argue.
You saved Georgiana, and I can never repay that, and truly, my heart will not allow me to do otherwise.
I have missed you so much since we parted, and I know that it is impossible for me to love another more than I love you.
Sincerely,
Fitzwilliam Darcy
***
31st July 1811
Dear Fitzwilliam,
I do trust you with all my heart. Perhaps the next assembly at Meryton would be a good time for the compromise?
It is Tuesday, 13th August, and the wedding to Mr. Stirling is arranged for the end of that week.
I suggest you insult me, and I will confront you, and I can fall on you, or you can fall on me.
We had best make it as indelicate as possible and with abundant witnesses.
Many, many thanks.
And I love you. You are a kind and generous and noble gentleman.
With love and gratitude,
Elizabeth Bennet